A Ripple in Time
by GBJackson
Summary: Oscar Rodgers works a mediocre job and lives a mediocre life. But when he is invited to Iceland by his archaeologist cousin, he has no idea as to the adventure he is about to be drawn into.
1. Chapter 1

_I neither own nor claim any rights to How to train Your Dragon..._

**Hello, everyone... I am back with a new storyline in the same universe as my "Jarin and the Riders of Berk," and "Jarin and the Legacy of Nartara". I actually began this in what I was calling "The Diary of Oscar Rodgers", but I did not like the way it was flowing, so I decided to cancel that and take a new stab at it, told once again as an actual story, rather than in diary form. I enjoyed writing for Hiccup and friends, and for the OCs I created. So here I am, at it again.**

**Enjoy...**

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><p>A Ripple in Time<p>

Chapter One – To Iceland

Oscar "Ozzy" Rodgers was an average young man working an average mediocre job, the best he was able to get even after sinking thousands of dollars into a college education that was supposed to open up all sorts of exciting career possibilities. By all rights, it should have been, but the American economy started to tank, and the job market followed suit. It was his usual bad luck that this happened right after he completed his bachelors' degree in business. All the companies he once had an eye on as prospects were in fact laying off people left and right. The best he managed to land was a monotonous data entry position, that involved sitting at a computer in a tiny cubicle for eight hours every day for five days of the week.

He convinced himself that his job was integral to the company. Maybe it was in that the company needed people to enter data into the system so the actual sales agents could do their job. But it was not something that really required a college degree to do, in spite of it being mandated in the job description. The hours he worked didn't really afford him much of an opportunity to really look for a new job, and being an actual bachelor, his salary was enough to pay his bills. But he was bored, to say the least.

He got home from work one evening and checked his personal email. There in his in-box was a message from his cousin, Robert:

_Ozzy! Long time no write, eh?_

_I'm here in Iceland on a research project, and I have discovered something really big. Remember back when we were kids, fascinated with stories of Vikings and Dragons and other silly stuff like that? Well you know that I never lost interested in Norse mythology, and that is what led me to pursue historical research on the subject. Well it has paid off. Like I said, I found something, and I want you to be there to witness it._

_I know that this is short notice, but I am prepared to secure a plane ticket for you to get you out here. I promise you that this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and I would not pester you if I didn't believe that. Were it not for our childhood fantasies, I wouldn't be here, so it is only fitting that I share this reality with you._

_What do you say? Let me know within 48 hours._

_-Bob_

Oscar read it over again a couple of times to make sure it was real. He hadn't heard from his cousin in years. Just remembering their childhood games of Vikings vs. Dragons made him cringe at the silliness of it all and, at the same time, long for those days again. One good thing about the company he worked for is that he never lost any accumulated vacation time, and they actually allowed it to be taken at any time, as long as there was at least twenty four hours notice before the first shift he would miss. He really did need to get away for a while. This visit with Bob in Iceland might be just what he needed.

He fired off a reply to Bob with just three words:

_I'll be there!_

About thirty minutes later, his Email chimed, and there was the confirmation number for his plane ticket, held at the airport will-call desk for a flight for the day after tomorrow.

O O O

He got to the office early the next day and made straight for Human Resources. And got approved for two weeks of vacation time, effective the following day. When asked where he was going on such short notice, he merely replied, "I've got a family matter that needs tending to out of the country." It had the virtue of being true, and seemed to satisfy the HR clerk's curiosity.

One more grueling day of monotony, and he would be on a two week adventure. That's what Oscar told himself as he eased himself down in his corporately uncomfortable chair, ready to get it over with. However, he could not remember a more gruelingly monotonous day since he started with the company. He spent what he was sure to have been an hour entering data, only to look up and see that only fifteen minutes had passed. Then the urgent phone calls started rolling in. Someone had made some major errors on a major account, and the major project got dumped on him. It was a major pain.

By the time he clocked out at the end of the day, he was exhausted. It always frustrated him when people would make snide comments like "How could you be tired? All you do is sit on your but punching keys! I've got to crawl around in hot, narrow spaces and weld stuff! Do that all day and talk to me about being tired." It was true. He was thinly built, not suited well to physical labor. But if his mind could lift weights, it would bench-press a ton. Had he gone into the engineering field, he would be the one designing the blueprints that resulted in others having to crawl around in hot, narrow spaces and weld stuff. And they would probably resent him all the more.

He didn't care, though. He made enough money to pay the bills, and he made it a point not to bite off more than he could financially chew. That made his life more mediocre, but while those guys who got paid the bigger bucks to do heavy work were neck-deep in debt, he was financially secure. And he wouldn't want it any other way.

Traffic was horrible on the way home, just one more thing to drag out the day. When he finally made it to his apartment, he was starving. He popped a TV Dinner into the microwave and went to wash up. The few acquaintances he entertained on rare occasion often commented on how unhealthy his diet was, often asking if he knew just what exactly was in those dinners. He would point out that it was probably about the same thing that the food industry put in everything else. There wasn't much else that they could say in that regard.

After he had eaten, he began packing. He figured he could make do with a week's worth of clothes, washing once while there, or barring that get two wears out of everything, avoiding consecutive days. He honestly wasn't sure what his accommodations would be like, but he did not want to carry any more luggage than necessary.

Just before turning in for the night, he heard his email chime. It was from Robert.

_Just making sure that everything is still on for your plane trip tomorrow._

_-B_

He fired back a quick response.

_Indeed it is. See you soon.._

_-O_

Just before turning in, he made sure that he had set his alarm correctly, as in making sure it was set for AM and not PM. He had no intention of missing his flight. As tired as he was, he had no problem drifting off to sleep.

O O O

The flight was long and his butt was dead by the time the plane touched down on the runway at Keflavik International Airport in Iceland. Robert was waiting for him.

"Ozzy!" his cousin shouted, spreading his arms wide.

"Bobby!" Oscar replied with a similar gesture. They embraced each other briefly but heartily.

"Jeez, Oz," Robert said with concern. "You look so stressed. Like the weight of the world is on your shoulders."

"I wish it were," Oscar replied as they headed for baggage claim. "I just had a particularly grueling day at work yesterday, and a long flight. I just want to turn in and sleep."

"I hear ya, cousin," Said Robert. "It was the same for me when I first flew out here a few months back. It took me days to get used to the change. I hope you brought warm clothes."

"I figure they don't call it iceland for nothing," Oscar snarked.

After collecting his luggage, Oscar and Robert left the airport and took a taxi to Bob's apartment.

"The couch folds out into a bed," Bob told him. "The tap water here is some of the cleanest in the world, so if you're thirsty, you got nothing to worry about. Want some coffee?"

Oscar shook his head. "Man, I just want to crash for an hour or two. You can fix some if you want, and I'll get some when I get up."

"I can do with a nap myself," Bob said. "I've been so keyed up for the past day that I could use a break. Let's do three hours, and then I've got a story to tell you over breakfast and coffee."

"Sounds like a plan," Oscar said. He folded out the couch bed as Bob retreated to his own room, kicked his shoes off, and lay down in his clothes and was asleep within minutes.

Three hours later, he was being shaken awake by Bob.

"Rise and shine, Ozzy," he said. "How do you like your eggs?"

"Scrambled. With cheddar if you have any."

Bob laughed. "One heart attack special coming right up"

the food was good and so was the coffee. Robert woofed his down, eager to get started. He produced a cardboard tube and slid a map out of it. He spread the map out on the table and used some heavy drinking glasses to keep it flat. It depicted an archipelago. He placed the tip of his finger on the center of one of the islands. "This is Berk."

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><p><strong>Okay... the story Robert will tell Oscar pretty much needs its own chapter. I just wanted to establish that this is indeed going to be a How To Train Your Dragon story by throwing out the reference to Berk. It's going to take a few chapters to get to that part of it, but bear with me. I will try to update this as often as I can.<strong>

**Be blessed, everyone.**


	2. Chapter 2

_I neither own nor claim any rights to How To Train Your Dragon_

**I want to thank those of you who are following this story. You are an encouragement to me to keep going. I would also like to encourage you to read my one shot stories, as well as my two multi-chapter stories, "Jarin and the Riders of Berk" and "Jarin and the Legacy of Nartara." While reading them is not necessary, many of the OCs you will read about in this one have a preexisting history that is coved in them.**

**And now, on to the latest chapter in "A Ripple in Time"**

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><p><strong>A Ripple in Time<strong>

**Chapter 2 – Robert's Story**

"This is Berk," Robert said, the tip of his finger resting on the center of one of the islands of the map. "It was once the site a thriving Viking clan known as the Hairy Hooligans. It was wiped out long ago by a devastating blizzard. Historical details of that point in their history are sketchy, but it seems that many of its inhabitants were evacuated before the storm buried the island under ice. I came across a reference to this island in a book whose title translated roughly to 'How to Train your Dragon, 20th edition, by Eryn Haddock, Daughter of Erik Haddock V.' Apparently, based on references throughout the book, the Haddock family ruled Berk for generations."

"'How to Train Your Dragon'?" One corner of Oscar's mouth was turned up and the eye on that side of his face squinted.

Robert recognized this as his cousin's "You've got to be joking" expression. "I know how it sounds," he said. "I wanted to roll my eyes and toss it aside as rubbish at first. I mean the title just sounds so stupid. Except that it was filed with several other instructional books, dated at approximately the same time period, so curiosity got the better of me. There is stuff in that book that is very detailed, Whomever Eryn Haddock was, she was meticulous, and clearly took her writing seriously. However, I remained skeptical until I actually found Berk. The artifacts I found there indicated that the dragons were a centerpiece of their society. Not just dragon lore. Actual dragons.

Oscar frowned. "Are you trying to tell me that there were once _real_ dragons?"

Robert nodded. "Apparently so."

Oscar shook his head, clearly not convinced. "Let's say for a moment that I buy that. You said that you had something you wanted to show me. Let me guess... You found a dragon."

Robert grinned. "Boy do I wish. No. I found something that doesn't seem to fit with anything in Norse mythology or verifiable history. And yet it comes from the time right about when the blizzard destroyed Berk. That is what I want you to see."

Oscar had to admit that he was curious. "So let's see it."

"It's not _here,_ you big goof," Robert said, still grinning. "It's on an island located about here," he pointed at an open area of water on the map. "I don't know how they missed it when charting this region, but I assure you that it is there. My team has established a base camp on the island, and they are studying some very puzzling readings emanating from what we are calling 'Odin's Mirror.'"

"Odin's Mirror?" Oscar repeated the name.

Robert nodded. "For want of a better name."

"You said puzzling readings?" Oscar asked. "What sort of readings?"

Robert sighed and shook his head. "You are not going to believe this," he said. "but there is some sort of time distortion surrounding the Mirror, and it gets stronger the closer to it you get. Those who were inspecting it closest found that their watches were a couple of hours behind those back at base camp. We didn't notice it until those guys weren't showing up for their work shift. I threw a stone towards the mirror, and it slowed down in mid-air. It actually took about 20 minutes for it to fully come to rest on the ground."

Oscar's eyes widened. "So time slows down the closer you get to the... uhm... Mirror."

Robert nodded. "So it would seem. Ozzy, I am an archaeologist, not a temporal physicist. But if I am right, then at the surface of the Mirror, time will actually stop. And something else that will blow your mind. When you get inside the time distortion field, your compass points north no matter what direction you face. Nothing in any science I ever studied explains how that is possible."

Oscar shook his head, resting a hand on his forehead. "Bob, it isn't that I don't believe you, but I want to see this for myself."

Robert grinned. "That's why you're here. Our pilot will be ready to take us to the island this afternoon."

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><p><strong>Okay... It's a bit short, but it let Bob explain what he's discovered and sets up for the next event.<strong>

**I look forward to your comments and reviews.**

**Be blessed...**


	3. Chapter 3

_I neither own nor claim any rights to How To Train Your Dragon..._

**Well here it is after far longer than I had planned, the third chapter in my "A Ripple in Time" story. I continue to be thankful to those who have liked and followed this story. You serve as an encouragement to me to keep writing, though the likes and followings are not a prerequisite. I'm just happy that I have provided something entertaining enough that people would want to read more. So thanks again. And now without further delay, I shall get on with it...**

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><p>A Ripple In Time<br>Chapter 3 - Odin's Mirror

The Helecopter ride was uneventful, aside from a little turbulance as they approached the island in the middle of the archepelego. An easy landing was made and Oscar and his cousin climed out onto the landing pad. they were met by a middle-aged man with short blonde hair and wire-rimmed glasses.

"Doctor Wilkins," the man called out above the noise of the helecopter as its rotors slowed down. "I'm glad you're back, finally."

"Paul," Bob said. "I would like to introduce my cousin, Oscar Rodgers," Then to Oscar, he said "Ozzy, this is my assistant, Doctor Paul Davis."

Oscar extended his hand, "A pleasure,"

"Likewise." Paul said, shaking Oscar's hand. "Doctor Wilkins, if I could please have a word with you?"

"Of course," Robert said. "Ozzy, the basecamp is just around the corner. Follow the path. Rachel will show you where to stash your stuff. I'll be along in a bit."

Oscar nodded and headed in the indicated direction.

"What's up, Paul?" Robert asked.

"We may need to evacuat the island," Paul replied.

"What happened?" Robert wondered.

"While were gone, we've detected increased seismic activity in the core. Apparently the time displacement has had an effect on the structural stability of the island. I am concerned that the stress will cause the core to shatter." That was Paul's to-the-point report.

This was bad. "The core" was what the expedition was calling the amphetheatre-like area where Odin's Mirror was loacted. If it shattered, it would mean that the Mirror would be lost, and with it the only evidence of what could only have been the presence of a technologically advanced civilization that resided in the region at some point in the past. Nothing short of that could explain the Mirror and what the time displacement field around it. It simply could not have been a natural effect.

Bob swallowed hard. "How long?"

Paul shook his head. "It's hard to be sure. If nothing changes, probably two to three days. But as crazy as things have been here, it could be a lot sooner, or it could be later."

"Get to the radio and call for the other choppers. Have them on standby." Robert said. "As much as I don't want to lose the opportunity we have here to study the phenomenon further, I will not put the lives of this team in danger. We'll learn what we can while we can, but we will not stay any longer than is safe."

Paul nodded. "Very good, Doctor."

O O O

"Are you Rachel?" Oscar asked the attractive young redhead sitting at the desk playing solitaire on one of the windows open on the large HD screen which was also showing several other displays pertanent to the research team's work.

The woman looked up and smiled. "That all depends," she said with a melodic voice.

"Depends on what?" Oscar smiled back

Her smile widened. "On who you are and what your business here is."

"Oh," Oscar replied. "I'm Oscar Rodgers, Robert Wilkins' cousin. I'm here at his invitation."

Rachel mumbled something under her breath about destiny, and her blue eyes seemed to be looking at something far away. After a moment, she seemed to snap back to reality. "Well," she said, extending her hand to him. "Then I am, indeed, Rachel. Rachel Larson"

Oscar took her hand. It was strange. For a split second it felt like he was shaking hands with his great grandmother. _Must be the jetlag,_ he thought. And just like that, the feeling was gone, and he was looking into the eyes of a lovely young woman. A lovely young woman who was smiling back at him. _Women do not smile at me,_ he thought. _THAT must be the jetlag, too._ He smiled back at her politely and released her hand. "Bob said you could show me where to put my stuff."

Rachel nodded. "Right. You wouldn't know anything about it, yet," she said.

Oscar raised one eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

Rachel sniffed. "I mean, how could you know where to stash your stuff until I show you?"

"Don't take this the wrong way, but you're a little wierd." he said.

Rachel laughed, a sweetly musical sound, "I get that a lot. Anyway, follow me." She led him out of the monitoring room and down a side hallway to the sleep chamber. It had several rows of beds, each with a foot locker at the end of it. "This one is available," she said, gesturing to a foot locker that had a key in the lock. "Take the key, but be sure to turn it in before you leave."

"Thank you, Rachel," he said.

She smiled at him agian, once again with that far-away look in her eyes that was gone a moment later. "I need to get back to my station. There's nothing really going on right now, but it wouldn't look good if the boss comes back and I am not there."

Oscar nodded. "Of course," he said. "See you later." As she walked out of the sleep chamber, Oscar thought he heard her mumble _"or earlier."_ Yep. She was a wierd one alright.

O O O

It wasn't long after Rachel had shown Oscar to the sleep chamber to store his stuff that Bob caught up with his cousin in the mess hall, which took up a room about the same size as the sleep chamber, but located on the opposite side of the base.

"Sorry for not sticking with you, Ozzy," Bob said. "We've got a situation brewing that may cut the expedition short. There are indications of growing geological instability. Nothing life-threatening. Doctor Davis has four choppers on standby, ready to come get us if things start to escalate."

Oscar nodded. "How long do we have?"

Bob pursed his lips. "If things keep on as they are, Paul thinks two to three days."

Oscar nodded again. "So when do I get to see this 'Odin's Mirror?'"

"First thing in the morning," Bob answered with a grin. "It's a fair walk from here to the Mirror. Even though there's still some daylight left, if we left now, it would be dark by the time we would have to come back. Believe me, we do not want to be caught between here and there after dark."

Oscar remembered reading stories about vikings who froze to death just a few meters away from the safety of home because they had gotten caught outside at night in heavy snow. This island was crazy. He had no idea what sort of weather conditions prevailed here, and his cousin's warnings convinced him that he didn't really want to find out first hand.

He didn't have any trouble getting to sleep that night. He dreamed that he was living among Vikings and Dragons and actually had a girlfriend who happened to look just like Rachel Larson. He even dreamed that he woke up to find Rachel resting her palm on his forehead, with a golden aura surrounding her. That was really wierd.

O O O

Bob shook Oscar awake just before sunrise. "Wake up lazy. Let's go grab some breakfast, and then gear up," he said, his voice full of mirth.

"Five more minutes," Oscar said, puling the blanket over his head, only to have it completely yanked off of him by his cousin.

"Not gonna happen! We've got too much to see." Bob fired back.

Oscar sighed. "Fine," he said, sitting up.

"See you in the mess hall," Bob said.

Oscar was tempted to lay back down, but he had come all this way to see this Mirror for himself, his cousin had paid for his plane ticket and had been a good host. He had to reciprocate. So he got up, relieved himself in the restroom, combed his hair, and made his way to the mess hall.

"Here's that book I told you about," Bob said, holding out a leather-bound volume with Norse runes all over it.

Oscar flipped through it, noting the pictures that were hand-drawn, with exquisite detail. Some of them seemed to be portraits with names under them. "Who are these people?"

Bob looked over Oscar's shoulder and pointed to each portrait in turn, quoting the names. "Stoick 'the Vast' Haddock, Chief of Berk; Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, First Rider of Berk; Astrid Hofferson-Haddock, Shield Maiden of Berk; Snotlout Jorgenson, Dragon Warrior of Berk; Fishlegs Ingerman, Loremaster of Berk; Ruffnut and Tuffnut Thorsten, Dragon Warriors of Berk."

Oscar looked up from the book "Who were they?"

"According to the translation," Bob began, "they were the prominant Vikings in the first generation of Dragon Riders on Berk. There is a brief account of how peace was made between Vikings and Dragons, and there are other accounts of that peace extending to other islands in the archipelego. It wasn't all rainbows and kittens, though. The book mentions a mad warrior named Drago Bludvist who was raising a dragon army to subjugate the viking tribes under his rule. He was defeated, but Stoick the Vast was killed in the battle, to be succeded by his son, Hiccup."

"These people had strange names," Oscar commented.

"Yep," Bob said. "But different cultures have different ideas. And it was a different time."

Oscar thumbed through the book some more, noting the pictures of different species of dragon. "Wow!" he said. "I had no idea there were so many different types of dragons. Why aren't there any records of any of them?"

Bob shook his head. "Who knows. part of me still wants to dismiss this as fiction, but where the book was found in Berk's library, like I said, were many reference manuals on different crafting methods, some of them written by the same author. She clearly took it very seriously. As to where the dragons all went, none of the books we found give any clue."

Oscar pondered this information for a moment.

"Anyway," Bob declared, "Finish yout oatmeal, then let's go suit up so I can show you what I brought you all this way to see."

O O O

Thirty minutes later, they were half way between the basecamp and the Mirror. A mountain range rose ahead of them.

"The mountains dominate the center of the island," Bob explained. "There is a narrow pass that cuts through to an amphitheatre-like valley at the very heart. We call it "the Core. The Mirror is in there."

They walked on for about twenty more minutes and found themselves at the entrance to the pass. "Almost there," Bob said. "Get ready to see some interesting stuff."

After a few minutes of walking, Bob stopped. "Remember what I told you about the strange effects on the compass?"

"Yeah," Oscar answered.

"Well," Bob said, gesturing to an area in front of him. "The phenomenon starts right about here."

Oscar took out his compass and looked at it. "Okay... I see East Northeast," he said.

"Right, said Bob with a nod. "Now step forward and watch the compass."

Oscar did as instructed. "Woah!"

Bob grinned. "Now, It's showing due north, isn't it?"

Oscar shook the compass and blinked his eyes. "Yes."

Bob continued to grin. "Now turn around and face the other way."

Again, Oscar did as instructed. "The compass isn't turning. It's locked to north just like you said." Anticipating his cousin's next instruction, he walked back the way they had come. "Okay. West Southwest." He then walked backwards. "North again! This is unbelievable!"

Bob nodded. "Like I said at the apartment, it defies all known scientific explanation. It's like the laws of magnetism simply do not apply here."

Oscar could only shake his head. He had never seen anything like this. He wasn't even sure if anything like it had been in any of the science fiction movies he had seen. Something big was at work here, and suddenly he wondered whether or not it was wise for him _or_ his cousin to be meddling with it. He didn't hesitate to voice his opinion.

Bob laughed, but it was somewhat forced. "Believe me, Ozzy, I have considered that. But we're here. We've been very careful not to touch anything. As soon as these strange things were observed, and it happened quickly, we decided that we would record and document only. We have no idea what this place is all about, but we are not taking any serious chances."

"That's good," Oscar said, though he still felt a bit uncomfortable with just _being_ there.

Bob clapped his cousin on the shoulder. "Come on. Odin's Mirror awaits."

They continued through the narrow pass.

O O O

Another half hour of brisk walking brought them into the Core. Oscar couldn't help but stare at the spectacle before him. There were crystal formations everywhere, refracting rainbow colors everywhere like a prism. There was a resonating hum in the air coming from what did indeed look like a giant mirror set into the rock face straight ahead.

"Oh, my God!" Oscar said, with eyes wide and mouth hanging open.

Bob laughed, this time mirthfully. "I said the same thing, and probably looked exactly how you look." He took a shuddering breath. "Nothing I have ever seen in all my travels compares to this."

Oscar felt like he was about to ask a stupid question, but he had to ask it, "What _is_ it?"

Bob sighed. "We don't know for sure. But based on the temporal displacement that increases closer to the Mirror, our best theory is that the mirror is some sort of time portal."

Oscar rolled his eyes. "That's a bit of a stretch, don't you think?"

"Believe me, Ozzy," Bob began, "With this thing, _any_ theory is a stretch."

"So what makes you think it's a portal?" Oscar asked.

"Watch," Bob said, picking up a stone and tossing it towards the Mirror.

Oscar stared as the stone's flight through the air slowed down the closer it got to the mirror. It was hardly moving at all as it touched the reflective surface...

...And vanished, with the 'glass' rippling as if it were water reacting to a tossed pebble.

"Okay," Oscar said after letting out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. "So it is a portal. And I guess that the visibe slowdown of the stone reinforces the time thing. So 'Time Portal' is as good as any guess... I guess."

"Agreed," said Bob.

Oscar sighed. "I wish it would show us the destination"

"You and me both," Bob replied.

The resonance hum in the air rose in pitch, and the surface of the mirror rippled again and then settled out to perfect smoothness again. It still seemed to be showing a reflection of the core, but they were no longer being reflected.

"Uhm..." said Oscar. "Did I do that?"

"Apparently so," was Bob's only response.

"How did I do that?" Oscar asked

"VOICE PRINT RECOGNIZED. RODGERSON, ALARICK, APPROVED TEMPORAL LIAISON BERK ALPHA ALPHA SEVEN."

The voice that came from the mirror was mechanical in nature, with a metalic reverberation. It was mid-toned, so it could not be identified as either male or female.

Both Oscar and Bob looked at each other in astonishment.

O O O

Back at the basecamp, Doctor Paul Davis was studying the seizmic sensor readings on the big screen. Everything was in the green, and he sighed with relief. He didn't like it that Robert had gone into the core with only his cousin. If the geological instability were to degrade suddenly, there might not be enough time to get anyone out of there. But the readings were showing stable for now. For the moment there was no danger.

"Keep an eye on these readings, Rachel," he said, standing up and stretching his shoulders. "I need coffee."

Rachel nodded. "No problem, Doctor."

Paul hadn't taken two steps away from his chair when the beeping started. He froze, heart almost stopping. He rushed back to the counter, rolling the chair out of the way, standing over the workstation. Sensors were starting to show yellow. All of them. "Dear God!"

He keyed the contact code for the mainland chopper station and tapped the transmit button on his wireless headset. "Chopper station one this is Island research Station Wilkins. Evacuation protocol!"

"Chopper Station One acknowledging evacuation protocol," a professional-sounding male voice crackled through the speakers. "Choppers outbound in three minutes. Have all personell ready for departure. ETA to research station Wilkins, thirty minutes. Mark!"

"Be advised," Paul responded. "Two members of research team in the field. Delay possible. Will advise further."

"Understood Research Station Wilkins," the chopper station operator responded.

Paul keyed in the contact code for Doctor Wilkins' radio. "Doctor Wilkins. Be advised that seismic readings on all sensors in the yellow. Evacuation protocol in effect. Return to base immediately. Timestamp 120317. Over." If Robert was in the core, there would be at least a 45 second delay due to the time distortion, hence the timestamp, so Robert would know when the message had actually been sent. The problem was that transmitting _out_ of the core had double the delay. So paul watched the clock intently as the seconds clicked by.

"Message Acknowledged, Paul," came Robert's clear voice. "On our way. Timestamp 210412."

An alert klaxon began to sound right at that moment, and the sensor readings began to change from yellow to red in rapid succession. The entire base camp began to shake.

"Oh NO!" he shouted and began barking orders through the intercom for everyone to evacuate immediately.

O O O

"We've got to go," Bob shouted, grabbing Oscar by the arm and pulling him away from Odin's Mirror.

No sooner did they get moving back towards the narrow pass that the core began to shake violently. The ground pitched under their feet, causing them to stumble. They struggled to their feet against the shifting surface and half-stumbled and half crawled ahead. The core was pretty wide as it was, but the shifting and pitching made it take a lot longer to get anywhere.

Bob made it into the pass and paused to look behind. Oscar had tripped and had gone down face first. he wasn't making any effort to stand. Bob started moving towards his cousin, but suddenly a rock formation jutted up out of the ground right at the mouth of the pass, cutting him off. "NOOOO!"

O O O

They had both been struggling across the core back to the pass. They got separated as the earth pitched and shifted. Rock formations began jutting through the floor and the walls. One of them pushed up underneath Oscar's feet, flipping him forward to do a face plant firmly on the ground, plunging him into darkness.

He wasn't sure how long he was out, but when he came to, there was no sign of his cousin, and the pass was blocked my a massive stone column that hade thrusted out of the ground. Bob must have gotten cut off from him. He knew his cousin would not have just abandoned him.

A new sense of urgency hit hims as the ground began to crumble at the center of the core, spreading outward.

"Perfect," he said out loud. There was no climbing out of the core, as the rock face was too steep. The pass was blocked. He couldn't stay there and wait for a rescue. There was only one logical path.

He began to stumble towards Odin's Mirror. He paused before it and took a deep breath. _Better lost in time than dead here and now,_ he thought. Steeling himself for whatever might come, he stepped into the Mirror.

O O O

Gelbrun rode on the back of his Majestic Flamescale, Brokenclaw, as the dragon sailed through the air. He remembered with sadness and self-loathing when he hated dragons of this species, until so recently known as Monstrous Nightmares, above all other dragons, because until so recently he had believed it was one of their kind who had killed his wife and son. He had not been in his right mind for a long time. In fact, his mind was not even his own for a long time. He had surrendered his well to demonic spirits who spoke their will to him, and like the puppet he had willingly become, he danced to their tune. His people and many innocent dragons suffered as a result.

Now he was free of that dark influence. Free by the grace of God, Creator of All, to whome he has since pledged his heart, and in so doing, regained his sanity and his love of life. More importantly, the truth about the circumstances surrounding the death of his wife and son were revealed to his soul, and he was permitted to be the tool of God's vengence against the real murderer.

Freed from the turmoil the demonic voices had plunged his mind, he had now come to love dragons, even as his new friend, Stoick the Vast, chief of Berk, had come to love them. His home of Nartara had now embraced the truth about dragons and how they could help humans prosper. Nartara's banner once depicted a monstrous nightmare skewered by a sword. Now it depicted a Majestic Flamescale with its wings upraised in a gesture of either praise or victory. His own daughter had become chief of nartara in his place, and her husband, jarin of Berk had become her chief advisor and head of a dragon training academy.

As for himself, Gelbrun had entered into a state of self-imposed exilte. The memory of the pain and suffering he had inflicted upon his people and dragons was too much to bear, so he left Nartara, never to return. He would live out the remainder of his days on Dragon Island, among the creatures he once loathed, but now loved.

But being an exile did not mean he couldn't enjoy the wonders of flight on the back of his dragon. And so it was that the two glided through the air in the middle of the Archipelego. A bright flash brought him out of his personal reflection. He looked down toward the strange, empty island with an open amphetheatre-like rock formation. He had been there before, but there was nothing noteworthy there. That wasn't the case now. From the air, he could see the form of a man lying sprawled on the ground.

"Brokenclaw," He called to his dragon. "Would you be so good as to land, please?"

The dragon spiraled down and touched down on the ground a short distance to the unconscous form of the man who lay on the ground. Gelbrun dismounted and strode quickly over to the man, knelt, and turned him over. He was a middle-aged man of average build. Clearly not a traditional Viking. More along the lines of Hiccup, Stoick's son, but with more meat on his bones. The man's clothes were strange. He couldn't figure out what they were made from. They didn't look like the wool, cloth and leather he was used to seeing. But that didn't really matter. He shook the man's limp form, trying to get some sort or fesponse. When nothing seemed to work, he gathered the man up in his arms as best as he could and carried him towards his Flamescale.

As he climed on the saddle with his human burden in front of him so he could hold onto him, he cleared his throat. "Brokenclaw," he said. "Take us to Berk"


End file.
